Creation and/or Evolution

To find some common ground on the creation/evolution debate, both parties will have to admit that they do not have the whole story. For the sake of the unknown, let’s just say for now that first the universe was created, then it evolved. We know it was created because it’s here. We know it evolves because it changes. We don’t know exactly how it was created or how it evolves. And if we are wise, we are acutely mindful that there is much we do not know that we don’t know. So now that both sides are validated, we need to work together to figure out the puzzle.

The issue of how we got here is as much a matter of evidence as it is mind games – the kind our biological minds play on us when we are not paying attention. An all-time favorite “polarization” game is the one called “I’m right – you’re wrong”. Instead of asking who is right and and who is wrong, ask how both perspectives can be true?

Both creationists and evolutionists are married to their philosophies, and therefore not free to change. If you instead wear a philosophy, you can discard it when it is outgrown. Look at theories and philosophies as stepping stones to the ultimate truth, rather than the “answer”.

Flexibility of thought is part of a functional life paradigm. “Functional” refers to “living”, which involves movement and change. A functional paradigm is a fluid work in progress.

The Spectrum of Causation

Follow the path from one end of the spectrum of causation to the other (how we came to be here), do you see any opportunities for gaps in knowledge? In a complex, mysterious universe, how can you be so sure of anything with the amount of evidence you have accumulated? Keep your mind open to what you may have missed.

What open minds do:

1. Allow evidence to form its own conclusion.

2. Include exclusive perspectives.

3. Appreciate the value of ignorance.

i. What we know that we know

ii. What we know that we don’t know

iii. What we don’t know that we don’t know

The microcosm reflects the macrocosm. In the same way that a parent passes their genes to their children, the same patterns in the universal macrocosm are at work in the human microcosm. Every law at work “out there” (universe), is at work “in here” (your body). Look up at the stars – that is were you live. Run into a speed bump studying physiology? Study astronomy for some clues. Find an interesting phenomenon out there? Look for it in here as well.

The spectrum of causation includes everything: the organism, it’s environment, it’s place in the universe, and things we don’t know that we don’t know. It goes from start to finish, and through all cycles. Everything must be accounted for. Causation (scientific knowledge) is like a huge mobius strip: go in the microscopic direction far enough, and you will find yourself “out there” in the macrocosm. Go in the macroscopic direction far enough, and you will end up “in here”. The two “ends” merge at consciousness.

Materialistic science can’t deal with this – because it’s materially oriented. This is why science and spirituality need to work together. Quantum mechanics is starting to touch upon universal mechanisms that border on spirituality – conscious is starting to be seen to affect matter. The spectrum of causality needs to account for everything: matter, energy, consciousness, God, and everything in between. If a scientific or spiritual theory does not account for these things – it is not complete.

Material science can only deal with physical evidence in the here and now. To peer into the distant past, the only evidence we have is found in the ancient spiritual teachings. The key word being “evidence”… scientists examine evidence… with an open mind. There are some very interesting insights to be had with an open mind…